To Have and to Hold
by AlwaysLoveRed
Summary: AU-Here he is, about to get married, and there's only one woman on his mind: his Bride...right?
1. Chapter 1

**So, I've got two weeks off from school and after three days I have realised I have NOTHING to do (yes, I'm **_**that**_** geeky). I haven't written a story for ages and I finally had a decent idea so here we are. I'm actually quite excited and hopefully I should be able to update quite regularly now that I have a load of free time.**

**This is an AU (I'm quite partial to these) so just some background info for you: this is an alternative way to how Castle and Beckett meet, Castle has only been married to Meredith (not Gina) he is 34, Kate is 27, and Alexis is 10. I think that's all you need to know for now, so here we go…**

**Summary: Here he is, about to get married, and there's only one woman on his mind: his Bride…right?**

**Disclaimer: Only in my dreams do I own Castle.**

**To Have and to Hold**

Most people thought Richard Castle was a playboy. They thought his life ambition was to saunter from club to club, partying, and loving and leaving many of the beautiful single women of New York. Honestly, they would have been right, once. When his books started selling and the millions started rolling in, his twenty-something year old self would have loved this lifestyle description. Over the years however, as Rick grew older and his daughter did as well, the clubs and pretty women became less and less appealing. He realised that he wanted more, for himself and for his child.

Alexis was the light of his life. He loved her more than he ever thought a person was capable of loving another human being, and the second he laid eyes on his perfect, pink, tiny baby girl ten years ago, he vowed to give her everything she could ever want. He thought he'd done a pretty good job over the years. His daughter wasn't materialistic really, she appreciated the nice things he bought for her, but she didn't _need_ them. The only thing she needed was him.

All they'd ever had was each other and he'd always had to play the role of father and mother. Alexis didn't seem to mind most of the time, she seemed to have accepted the fact that her mother was mostly absent a long time ago, but there were moments sometimes when he could see a sort of longing or slight sadness in her eyes. It was usually around special occasions: Christmas, Thanksgiving, Birthdays, when she'd open up a card containing a check from Meredith and the fact that her mother wasn't there in person would really hit home. It broke his heart to see his little girl sad in anyway. It made him feel as if he'd failed in giving her the best life possible because the only thing she really wanted was the most difficult thing to provide: a mother.

For the last couple of years Rick had been trying to date seriously, to try and find something real and long term but hadn't had much luck, until 5 months ago.

Her name was Sophie and she was great. She was beautiful with her long blonde hair, big blue eyes and kind smile, but she was also smart, successful, outgoing, and most importantly, she was _real_.

They met at a convention, where he was signing books and she was writing an article about the writers attending for the newspaper she worked for. They got to talking and were attracted to each other's charm and easy going attitude. They went out every night for the next two weeks and now all these months later, he thought he could say he was in love and was ready to take the next step.

Now here he was, sitting in his office (he was supposed to be writing) and he was staring at the 2 carat diamond engagement ring he had bought, pondering the best way to pop the question.

"Dad?" The questioning voice of his daughter broke his reverie, "What are you holding?"

"Hey Pumpkin, uhh-" he hadn't actually told Alexis of his plans yet as it never seemed to be the right time, but it looked like there was no escaping it now.

"Is that an…engagement ring?" She was now standing directly in front of him with a full view of the ring.

"Yes Sweetie, it is."

"Are you going to ask Sophie to marry you?"

"Yeah-"

"Oh." She sounded less than enthusiastic and she averted her eyes.

"Alexis, is this okay? Do you not want me to marry Sophie?" Rick was genuinely confused because Alexis and Sophie had known each other for a couple of months now and they seemed to get along quite well, he couldn't understand why all of a sudden the news of his engagement plans made her react in a way that made it seem as though he had just kicked a puppy.

"No it's not that, it's just…"

"What is it sweetheart?"

"Isn't it kinda…soon?" She said hesitantly.

Rick sighed in relief at the fact that Alexis' hesitancy wasn't down to disliking his girlfriend. He knew that if his daughter didn't approve, then he wouldn't marry her, no matter what he wanted. If he got married, his wife would then become a part of Alexis' life as well, and she had to be happy with the decision.

"Well, maybe it's a little soon, but I love Sophie and she loves me and I think I'd really like to make her my wife," he tried to explain.

"Does she make you happy?" And then he realised that his amazing, mature beyond her years daughter, was just looking out for him, that she didn't want him to get hurt.

He put the ring down on his desk and let his daughter climb onto his lap, before saying, "Yes sweetie, she makes me happy, and marrying her would make me very happy."

Alexis seemed to search his eyes to make sure he was telling the truth, smiling when she was sure he was and then she asked, "Do I get to be a Bridesmaid?"

He laughed at her question, overjoyed that she was on board, "Of course!"

Oh dear God, when did his tie become so tight? It seemed fine when he left home but now that he was sat at the table in the restaurant where he was waiting for Sophie to join him, it felt like he was slowly being strangled.

He felt his inside jacket pocket for about the tenth time in as many minutes, to ensure the ring box was still there and swore his heart skipped a beat when he couldn't feel it, before remembering it was on the other side, safe and sound.

_Calm down, idiot. _He chided himself.

He couldn't understand why he was so nervous; he'd done this before when he had proposed to Meredith, and he was more confident that Sophie would say yes than he had been when he proposed to his ex.

_Maybe that's why you're nervous_, a voice in the back of his head said; _maybe you're not ready to get remarried._

_No. I do love Sophie, and I do want to marry her._

"Rick?"

"Sophie!" He stood up to greet her, but in his nervous rush, he ended up hitting his knee against the table, wincing at the sharp pain.

"Oh, Sweetie, are you okay?" She gently touched his arm before he waved her off.

"I'm fine, I'm fine." _Crap, that hurts!_

"_Okay-" _she said uncertainly as they sat down.

"So guess what-"

"Can I ask-"

They both started at the same time, smiling at their own silliness.

"You first," Castle insisted.

"Okay, well, you know how I really wanted that promotion? The one that would let me travel all over the country to interview people, rather than just in New York? I got it!" Sophie really loved her job and she liked to travel, so Rick was pleased for her, she deserved it, and maybe her good mood would increase the chance of her accepting his proposal.

"Congratulations! I'm so proud of you!" He leaned over the table and gave her a quick kiss on the lips. "I think champagne is in order. I have a feeling we'll have a lot to celebrate tonight."

"What do you mean?" Sophie smiled confusedly.

"Well uh…" _Oh God, here goes_, "Sophie, these last few months have been amazing and you know I love you and," he reached into his pocket and pulled out the box, "is there any chance of you maybe, possibly, marrying me?" _Smooth. Try again. _He cleared his throat, then, "Sophie, will you marry me?"

His heart felt like it was beating out of his chest as he anticipated her answer.

_Is that because you want her to say yes or is it because you don't?_

"Yes!" She exclaimed, "Yes Rick, I'll marry you."

His brain caught up with him after it seemed to temporarily zone out after hearing her answer. He reached for her outstretched hand and slid the ring onto her finger. Sophie took a moment to gaze at it before she looked back at him, her eyes shining with happy tears.

"It's beautiful. I love you Rick." She leaned over and lovingly kissed him.

He breathed out heavily after she pulled away, getting rid of his left over nervous energy.

She said yes. So why was his heart still beating so quickly?

**Ooooh, is Castle having second thoughts? What do you think? I promise Kate will come into it soon, probably next chapter, so until then…Happy 100****th**** Episode!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you to everyone who read the first chapter, I know there wasn't too much action in it but this is where the good stuff really starts, so here's chapter 2! **

**Disclaimer: After the perfection that was the 100****th**** episode, I think it's safe to say there is no way I'm capable of owning a brilliant show like Castle.**

**To Have and to Hold**

_I need a coffee. _

That's what Kate Beckett thought as she finally finished signing the last bit of paperwork from the monster of a case her team had just wrapped up. She hadn't had more than a couple hours sleep in the last three days and now she needed a caffeine boost to keep her awake long enough to get home and get to bed.

She made her way to the empty break room, most people had wrapped up and gone home already, and she was about to pour herself a cup when she realised the pot was empty. _Typical._

She debated for a second about whether to start a new pot before deciding she'd rather just go home. _It tastes like crap anyway._

After collecting her things from her desk, she made the journey through the precinct and to her car, staying conscious long enough to drive herself back to her apartment. She winced at the bright morning light, _I must have been longer than I thought_, today was Friday and she thanked God that the Captain had given her and her team until Monday off to recuperate and reenergise.

When she entered her apartment she started making her way towards her bedroom, only pausing when she debated whether to eat first since she hadn't since yesterday lunch when Ryan brought in takeout for the team, but the comforting call of her bed was just too strong, so she bypassed food and ended up collapsing on top of her mattress, fully clothed, full make up, but she didn't even care because she was fast asleep before her head even hit the pillow.

It was the shrill ringing of her phone that woke Kate.

"Ugh. Who's calling me at-" she checked the clock on her bedside table, "8pm?" She couldn't believe she had slept the entire day! She picked up the phone and answered without checking the caller id.

"Beckett."

"Hi sweetie, it's me!" A cheery voice replied.

"Sophie?" She hadn't heard from her long-time friend in weeks. Kate and Sophie had been friends since Kate had transferred from Stanford to NYU after her mother's death. Sophie was a year older and had sort of taken Kate under her wing during that difficult time. They'd remained friends ever since and were actually quite close, although their busy schedules prevented them from seeing each other as much as they'd like, usually they made do with their weekly phone calls, but Sophie hadn't called for a little while now, and Kate had been too busy to really notice lately. She was glad to hear her friend's voice though.

"Yes, it's Sophie. I know I haven't called for a while, but I didn't think you'd forget about me so quickly," she teased.

"As if I could ever forget you, Soph."

"Well I should hope not. I mean we've only been friends for 8 years!" They both chuckled softly before Sophie carried on, "So listen, Kate, I actually called because I have to ask you something."

"Oh no, you don't want me to make a parking ticket _disappear_ again, do you?" Kate sat up in bed, cringing when she saw her make up smudged appearance in the mirror opposite.

"Hey, that was_ one_ time! No, I called to ask if you thought you'd be able to take a break from catching killers to come to a wedding."

"Oh, do you need someone to go with? Why don't you ask that guy you've been seeing, Rich?"

"_Rick_, and he'll be there, it's his wedding."

Now Kate was confused, "But how-" and then her sleep fogged brain finally caught on, "Oh my God! Sophie, you're getting married?"

"Yes!" Kate could tell her friend was over the moon, and she was happy for her, really, but she knew her friend had a tendency to jump into things without really thinking them through, and as far as she could tell, Sophie hadn't known this Rick guy for all that long.

"Sophie, I'm so happy for you, I really am, and don't take this the wrong way but, don't you think you're rushing into things a bit?"

"Not at all," she said unfazed, "Kate, I love him and he loves me. We want to spend the rest of our life together, and I think that's all that really matters, not how long we've been together."

"Well if you're sure then, congratulations!"

"And that's not all," Sophie carried on.

"You're not pregnant are you?" Kate wondered if maybe that was one of the reasons for the soon engagement.

"No! Trust me, if I was, it wouldn't take this long to get to my point. Kate,"

"Hmmm?"

"Would you please be my Maid of Honour?"

Oh. Kate had already been a Bridesmaid six times and after the first couple it had started to lose its appeal, and to be honest, after a while it got a little depressing; always a Bridesmaid, never a Bride. However, she loved Sophie and she'd always been there for Kate, so really, would it be that difficult to do this one thing for her? Being someone's Maid of Honour was supposed to be exactly that, an _honour_, and who knows? Maybe it would be fun?

"Of course Soph, if you want me to be you're Maid of Honour, I'll do it." Kate then proceeded to be deafened by her friend's excited squeal.

"Oh Kate, thank you! It's going to be great! I really wouldn't have wanted anyone other than you to do it." Sophie sounded so happy, and Kate knew she'd made the right decision.

"So what does a Maid of Honour do anyway?" Despite being a Bridesmaid several times, Kate had never actually been the Maid of Honour.

"Well, you help me pick dresses, the venue, flowers, but you can start by coming to the engagement party tomorrow night, if you can get time off?"

"Yeah, we just finished a big case so the Captain told us not to come in till Monday."

"Perfect! We're having dinner at _Angelo's_ at 7."

"Do I need to bring anything?" Kate realised she didn't really have much time to buy an engagement present.

"No, sweetie, don't worry about it. Just bring yourself and that's all I'll need."

"Okay, see you tomorrow Soph."

"Bye Kate, love you!"

The alarm went off at 7am and Rick woke with his arms wrapped around his fiancé of 2 weeks. Today was Saturday and that night they were going to have the engagement party with their closest friends and family. They broke the news of their engagement a couple of days after he proposed and their friends (particularly hers) appeared to be pleased for them. His mother had some doubts when she first heard the news but she had just smiled and told him 'as long as you're happy, darling' when he questioned her about it. He was happy. Really.

He realised that his butterflies had just been a result of nervousness over proposing. He did love Sophie and he did want to marry her; she was exactly what he and Alexis needed.

"Mmm," the sleeping woman in his arms began to rouse, "Morning sweetheart." She leaned over and kissed him. Something stirred inside him and he deepened the kiss, turning over so that he was leaning over her and eliciting a small moan from her. He smiled against her lips. _How could I have doubted my feelings for this beautiful woman?_

They continued for a few more minutes before she eventually broke away, "As much as I'd love to keep going with this, I can't." Rick sighed and moved away, "I have a meeting at 9 and another one after and I need to get ready."

"Oh, okay, what time will you be home?"

"Don't worry; I'll be back with plenty of time to get ready before we go to dinner." She gave him a final kiss and made her way to the bathroom to start getting ready.

Rick moved to put on his robe a couple of minutes later, deciding he might as well start breakfast.

When he got to the kitchen he saw that Alexis was already up and watching cartoons on the couch.

"Hey pumpkin, have you been up long?" He greeted. When she saw him she made her way over to sit on a stool at the kitchen counter while he began preparing breakfast.

"No, only about 15 minutes. Are we having pancakes?"

"Of course! You know Saturday is our designated pancake day!"

"Can we have strawberry smiley face pancakes?"

"Is there any other kind?" She smiled at his reply, enjoying their father-daughter tradition.

He dished up three plates and the two of them started eating just as Sophie made her way from the bedroom, now fully dressed.

"Hey I made pancakes," he gestured to her plate as she walked over.

"Thanks honey but I've got to run, or I'll be late." She kissed him quickly before walking over to the door. "Have a nice day, both of you."

Rick noticed that Alexis had become quiet when Sophie appeared. He knew that Alexis felt a little awkward around his Bride-to-be, and he knew that the feeling was mutual on Sophie's end. It wasn't that they didn't like each other; it was just that Sophie didn't really have much experience with kids and although she tried, she just found it hard to find something in common with his daughter to talk about. But Sophie knew that Alexis was first in his life and he appreciated that she made an effort with her, it was more than most of his past girlfriends did.

"So, Alexis, what are we gonna do today? Laser tag? Fencing? Or maybe we could go to the park, or museum?" he listed the possibilities, his childlike excitement growing as the list grew longer. Honestly, Alexis thought that sometime she was the more grown up of the two.

"Sorry dad but you're on your own today. Remember? I'm going to Paige's house. Her dad's coming to pick me up at 10 and bringing me back home before the party tonight."

"Oh yeah." He quickly deflated and she felt bad.

"Don't worry, dad. I'm sure you'll find something to do. And maybe we can do all that stuff next weekend?"

"Sure sweetie." He smiled at his amazingly responsible and caring daughter and couldn't help but wonder how he got so lucky.

Kate was not used to having so much free time. Her job usually required her to work all hours of the day and night and now after having slept most of yesterday and with the party not being until that night, she found herself full of energy with nothing to do.

It was only noon and she had already cleaned her entire apartment, taken a shower and got dressed, and even done a little grocery shopping (she'd finally gotten rid of the takeout temple in her fridge). There was nothing on TV at this time of day and all her friends already had plans. She was bored.

Then she realised that she hadn't had much to eat in the last 24 hours. She'd checked her fridge for a late dinner last night after her phone call with Sophie but nothing seemed particularly appetising (that was when she'd decided to bite the bullet and go grocery shopping) so she'd just ended up eating a bowl of cereal. And then this morning she'd forgotten about breakfast (she needed to stop doing that) because she'd been preoccupied with her morning activities. All of a sudden her stomach growled and she decided she might as well head out for a good old Remy's burger and shake.

Remy's was fairly busy when she got there, after all it was lunch hour, so she decided to sit at the counter, so as not to take up an entire booth when she was only eating by herself.

She sighed. _By myself_. Normally Kate didn't mind solitude but the news of Sophie's engagement really made her realise that she wasn't anywhere close to being engaged, she hadn't even been seeing anyone since Will left six months ago. She missed the companionship and happiness that came with being in a relationship but she just never seemed to have time to date, she was pondering whether she should make more of an effort when a voice interrupted her thoughts.

"Uh, hi, do you mind if I sit here?"

She looked up to see a familiar looking man, with thick brown hair and brilliant blue eyes pointing to the empty seat next to her.

"Go ahead." She said and he sat down just as her food arrived.

She moaned slightly as she took the first bite of her burger, they were just so _good_, which seemed to catch the attention of the man now sat next to her.

"That good, huh?" He questioned with a slight chuckle.

She blushed slightly at his words, "Uh, yeah," she replied somewhat awkwardly, trying to concentrate on eating her food and letting her long wavy brown hair curtain her face, so he couldn't see the pink twinge on her cheeks.

"Hey, I'm sorry; I didn't mean to embarrass you, although you do look cute when you blush."

She looked at him again, surprised at his blunt words, and she couldn't ignore the slight increased rate of her heart when he smiled a boyish smile at her. _God, he's cute._

"I wasn't embarrassed," she tried to defend.

"Oh really? It sure looked like it," he challenged, a mischievous glint in his eye.

"Maybe I was just warm, and that's why you thought I was blushing," she tried to convince.

"It's February. It's freezing outside."

"It's warm in here."

"You don't give up easily, do you?" He pointed out, a curious look on his face. _No wonder he's looking at you that way, you're bickering about blushing, for goodness' sake!_

"No I don't. Especially when I'm right." _No point backing out now._

"Okay, whatever you say." They were quiet for a moment, the debate settled, before he said, "So, judging by that moan which you _weren't_ embarrassed about," she narrowed her eyes at him slightly in annoyance, "You think I should order a burger?"

"Definitely. Remy's burgers are the best. Haven't you been here before?"

"No, first time. I just found it while I was wandering around the city, bored." _So I don't recognise him from here. Where have I seen him? _Kate thought.

"Well in that case, I think you should be aware that the shakes here are to die for as well."

"I guess I have no choice then. I can't go on another day not knowing the awesomeness of a Remy's burger and chocolate shake," he said in a deadly seriously voice.

Kate laughed, "You should be glad that I was here to point you in the right direction, otherwise you could have ended up with a hardly satisfying hotdog and soda, and then where would you be? But I need to fulfil the rest of my duty and tell you that _strawberry_ shakes are the best." She picked up her drink and took a long sip to prove her point.

"What? No way! Chocolate's always best!" he said with a childlike enthusiasm.

"Suit yourself, just don't come crying to me when your chocolate milkshake doesn't even compare to my strawberry one."

"But I won't know will I? Because I've never tried the strawberry one to be able to compare them." He pointed out with an air of victory, "Unless…"

"Unless what?" she asked, feeling a sense of dread forming in her stomach, or was that anticipation?

"Unless, you let me taste yours."

"What?!"

"Come on! I'll get the chocolate, you have the strawberry. I'll show you mine if you show me yours!" he said, a playful smile on his face.

"No way!"

"Why not?" he whined like a child who'd just had his toy taken away, "It's the only way you can prove you're right."

"I don't care. We don't even know each other!" Honestly, this man was unlike any other she'd met. How could someone seem so childish and so manly at the same time?

"So?"

"So," she mimicked exasperatedly, "I don't know where your mouth has been." She almost laughed at the way his face fell when she said this.

"I don't know where yours has been either!"

"Well I'm not the one who wants to swap straw saliva with a stranger," she pointed out.

"Come on, it's no grosser than, uh, kissing a stranger."

"Who said anything about being willing to kiss you?" Honestly she wouldn't mind kissing him, but he didn't need to know that.

"I'll have you know lots of women would want to kiss a ruggedly handsome stranger like me," he said with an air of arrogance.

"Oh really?"

"Yes, really."

After he said this, they seemed to enter some sort of stare off, neither willing to be the first one to break their gaze. _Wow, he really does have nice eyes._

The moment was broken by his phone, signalling he had a text message. He reached into his pocket to check it before sighing and standing up.

"Looks like I'll have to wait to try one of those burgers, I've got to go, uh-"

"Kate," she supplied.

"Kate. I'm Rick by the way. It was nice meeting you."

"You too."

"Maybe I'll see you around?"

"Yeah, maybe." They shared a somewhat flirtatious smile before he turned and left the diner.

Kate was left to eat the rest of her lunch in a decidedly good mood, Rick had really seemed to leave an impression on her, and she thought that maybe he felt the same about her. It was strange really; they'd never met before and here they'd been, bickering about blushing and milkshakes like they'd known each other for a long time. She also realised that they'd even been flirting a little. She smiled at the memory and really hoped she would in fact see him again.

She still couldn't shake the feeling that she'd seen him before though. She knew she didn't know him from Remy's, and he definitely didn't seem like a criminal she'd come across at work, so what could it be? And then it hit her. Brown hair, blue eyes, boyish smile, _Rick_.

"Oh my God," she said as realisation dawned on her. She recognised him because she'd seen him on the jackets of her numerous copies of his books, how could she not have seen it straight away?

She'd just met and _flirted_ with Richard _freaking_ Castle!

**There we go! I can't believe how long this one ended up being (for me), but I wasn't really sure where the cut-off point should be. Anyway, hopefully now you can see how Kate is linked to Sophie and Rick. Let me know what you thought.**

**Next chapter's the engagement party. I wonder how Rick and Kate will react when they realise who the person they each met in the diner really is? You'll just have to see…**


	3. Chapter 3

**Thank you to everyone who's been reading this story, especially those who've reviewed/followed/favourited, I wish I could just give you all a hug (but that would be weird since we don't know each other!) Seeing feedback really encourages me to keep writing, and so here we go with chapter 3…**

**Disclaimer: Nope, it's breaks my heart, but Castle ain't mine.**

**To Have and to Hold**

Rick was sat at his desk, trying to kill some time by writing but his brain appeared to be having trouble concentrating on anything other than the woman he'd met at Remy's earlier, _Kate_. He'd really been enjoying her company until Gina texted him, saying he'd 'better get his ass over to her office _now_ if he and Sophie planned to have children in their future'. He then spent the next hour being yelled at by his publisher, telling him to get a move on with the next book and that he didn't even want to know what would happen if he didn't have the first couple of chapters on her desk within the next week. That's why he was sat here, praying for any decent idea to grab a hold of him and let itself appear on the page, because he really _didn't_ want to know what Gina was capable of doing to him.

The trouble was, the only idea he'd had which was appealing at all was a new character: a woman with wavy brown hair and brown eyes, or were they green? She could be a gorgeous undercover agent that Derrick Storm would encounter and become infatuated with. However, Rick knew he was kidding himself, and that this new 'character' was really just Kate making her way into his writing. He didn't understand though how she could consume his thoughts so thoroughly; he didn't know anything about her for Christ's sake!

The sad truth was, meeting Kate at the diner and having their little 'debate' was probably the most fun he'd had in weeks, and he wasn't quite sure what to make of that.

A moment later he heard the front door being unlocked, _Sophie_, he thought, and he latched onto the chance to go and greet her. At least he'd have a real distraction from writing and not some short-lived memory of a woman he'd probably never see again.

"Hey sweetheart," he smiled and kissed her hello, "Did your meetings get cut short? You seem to be home early."

She gave him look which clearly said, _are you kidding me?_ Before she pointed out, "Rick, it's 5pm. We need to get a move on if we're going to be ready and get to the restaurant in time for the party."

A quick glance at the time on the microwave confirmed what his fiancé had told him and it was only then that he realised he'd wasted the entire afternoon thinking about potential characters with wavy brown hair and colour-changing eyes.

"Is Alexis home yet?" Sophie questioned and then, as if on cue, there was a knock at the door, signalling that his daughter had just been dropped off by her friend's father. His Bride-to-be opened the door and thanked Paige's dad, and in that moment Rick noticed a sort of domesticity to the situation, which made his heart flutter slightly with the realisation that this could be their future very soon, a proper little family. And, when his two girls turned to face him, he couldn't stop the stupid grin that came across his face, and for the first time that afternoon, his mind was free of fun strangers he'd met in a diner, now replaced with love for his family and a sudden eagerness to get ready for the party where he'd celebrate his engagement to this beautiful woman.

"Shit." Kate checked her dad's watch again, "Oh crap, I'm _so_ late!" She was currently making her way through the crowded streets as fast as she could with the 4-inch heels she was wearing and the endless amount of people who seemed to be making it their life mission to get in her way, trying to get to her dear friend's _once in a life time_ engagement party, for the wedding where she was supposed to be _Maid of Honour_, and she was 20 minutes late! Ugh, she knew she'd be no good at this.

One of the things that Kate hated in life was being late to get to somewhere. If you were meant to be somewhere at a certain time, you should try everything in your power to get there on time. In her job, a few minutes could mean the difference between catching a killer and letting them get away, but this wasn't just a few minutes, this was 20!

She blamed Richard Castle. After meeting him at Remy's earlier, he'd been stuck in her thoughts for the entire afternoon, and when she had gotten home and saw _Flowers for Your Grave_ sitting on her bookshelf, she couldn't stop herself from seeing if it was any better now that she'd met the author. It was. She told herself she was only going to read one chapter, but then it turned into two, and before she even realised, she was reading the last line on the last page of the book and it was already 6:30.

She'd had to throw on her go to just-above the knee black dress, quickly primp her hair (thankfully already suitably curled), and touch up her makeup from earlier. She then proceeded to stuff her feet into her beloved killer heels, grab her purse, shrug on her coat and then she practically ran out the door, hailing the first taxi that came past.

Just when she thought she could finally relax in the back seat, seeing it was still only 6:55, the taxi came to an abrupt stop, caught up in _really_ bad traffic. She tried to wait it out but eventually decided she'd be faster on foot, if she could chase down criminals in high heels every day, she sure as hell could make the rest of the way to the restaurant in them, and now here she was, very nearly at the restaurant, and cursing Rick Castle for writing such damn good books, which were so easy to get caught up in.

Eventually, she arrived at Angelo's at 7:23, and a very smiley waitress showed her to a sectioned off part of the restaurant near the back, where the party was obviously taking place.

There was a long table with a lot of people sitting on either side. Kate noticed that the people who were obviously closer to Sophie and her fiancé, and more involved in the wedding were sat nearer to the happy couple. She also noticed that most of these people she recognised as Sophie's friends and family, with the exception two redheads, both beautiful, one who was older, and one a child, who she assumed were Rick's relatives. The third thing she noticed was that there was a vacant chair either side of Sophie, one she assumed was hers and the other reserved for the groom, who seemed to presently be missing.

"Kate!" Sophie broke off the conversation she'd been having with a woman nearby when she saw Kate approaching.

"Hey Soph! I'm so sorry I'm late," she apologised as she hugged her friend, who was now standing, both of them wearing big smiles due to seeing each other after such a long time.

"Don't worry about it; I'm just so glad you're here!"

"Me too." They pulled away from each other before Kate gestured to one of the empty chairs, "So where's the groom? I want to meet the guy who was crazy enough to propose to you," she teased.

Sophie just smiled at her friend before answering, "He just went to the men's room quickly, he'll be back any minute now. Oh, and Kate, when you see him, try not to fan girl too much."

"What do you mean?" _She really __**is**__ crazy…_

Then Kate noticed that Sophie's attention was suddenly on someone standing behind her, she followed her friend's gaze, turning around, and when she saw who it was, she swore her heart skipped a beat, and her eyes widened in surprise, as did his when he saw her.

Richard _freaking_ Castle.

_Oh my God_, Rick thought when he saw Kate standing in front of him. It was Kate! Kate from the diner, with her expressive hazel (he'd decided the colour) eyes, and her silky looking (that was new) curled hair, and a look of disbelief on her face, which he was sure matched his own.

He looked to Sophie, who hadn't seemed to notice the recognition plastered across his and Kate's faces, as she walked over to him, gestured to Kate and said, "Rick, this is my dear friend, and Maid of Honour, Kate."

He debated for a moment over what to do. He wasn't going to lie to himself, he knew that there had been some flirting involved earlier in the diner, and he had been thinking of the brown-haired beauty all afternoon, but he loved Sophie, and he didn't want to give her the wrong impression by mentioning the details of his and Kate's previous meeting, so he made a decision and prayed that the look in his eyes would persuade Kate to go along with it, "Hi, it's nice to meet you," he greeted, holding his hand out for her to shake.

She paused for a moment, a look of hesitation crossing her face before she put on a (seemingly fake) smile and replied, "Nice to meet you too."

Kate was pissed.

She had refused to speak and for the most part, even look at Rick Castle during dinner and dessert.

She kept replaying their conversation in Remy's in her head, and she was certain he'd been flirting. He'd been flirting with her despite the fact that he was _engaged_! And now she felt terrible because she'd been flirting back, with the man who was her good friend's fiancé! Of course she hadn't known that at the time, but _still_.

So now, she had dubbed him a jackass, whom she wanted as little to do with as possible.

Her thoughts were momentarily interrupted by the sound of laughter from the occupants of the table, and when she looked she realised it was due to something _Castle_ had said. Yes, he was Castle now, not Rick. Surnames were more professional, and that's all she was ever going to be with him, so that the same mistake was not ever made again.

Unfortunately, Sophie had seemed to notice her slightly reserved behaviour.

"Kate," her friend said softly, not drawing the attention of the other people, "sweetie, is everything okay?"

Kate put on a smile, hoping it would be enough to satisfy her friend, "Of course, why wouldn't it be?"

Sophie gave her a look of disapproval before answering, "Don't think you can fool me. I've known you long enough to know when something's up, so spill."

"Really Soph, it's nothing."

Sophie would not be deterred, "Is it Rick?" At Kate's look of surprise she explained her assumption, "I know you've been avoiding talking to him, and I thought at first maybe you were just a little star struck because I know you love his books. But now I feel like maybe it's something else. So tell me, don't you like him?"

Kate wasn't sure what to say. She could tell her friend would be upset if she didn't approve of her choice of a future husband, so she decided to bend the truth slightly, "It's not that I don't like him. I just feel like I don't really know him, and I guess it just makes me slightly uncomfortable, the idea that I don't even really know the man you're marrying."

Sophie smiled, somewhat relieved, "Well then, maybe if you talked to him, you'd know him slightly better." And before Kate could shoot down the idea, her friend had already turned to her fiancé, saying loud enough for everyone to hear, "Hey, honey, why don't you and Kate go get us all some more drinks from the bar?"

Castle looked slightly surprised for a moment, before pushing his chair out, "Uh, okay, sure." He got up and began walking to the bar, only pausing as he waited for Kate to get up. She sighed and glared at her friend for doing this to her.

At the bar, Kate and Castle stood awkwardly next to each other as they waited for the bartender to get everyone's usual order. It was Castle who broke the ice first.

"Hey, uh thanks for going along with me earlier, you know, pretending that this was the first time we'd met."

She glared at him and responded with a slight bite to her words, "Listen, the only reason I played along was because I didn't really care to upset my friend with the news that her fiancé had flirted with me earlier."

"I wasn't flirting!" He tried to defend, but she just shot him a look that said, _Oh really_, and he seemed to get the message not to deny it, "Okay, maybe there was some flirting."

She suddenly gave a short, unamused laugh, "You know, I was actually kind of excited to meet you in the diner. I thought you were a decent guy."

"I am a decent guy!" He exclaimed, a little outraged that this woman who barely knew him would be so quick to insult his character.

She turned to face him, wanting to properly get her point across, and ignoring the closeness between their faces, "Oh, so decent guys don't think twice about chatting up women who aren't their fiancé? They forget about promising to love and be faithful to one girl every time a pretty face walks by?"

"What are you implying?"

"I'm implying that maybe the tabloids don't print all lies. Maybe Richard Castle is too much of a playboy to be able to truly only love one woman."

He really did seem quite angry now, "You don't know me. Just because I flirted a little bit with a stranger in a diner, does not mean she's suddenly worth me ditching my fiancé. I love Sophie and I would never intentionally hurt her, especially over _you_!"

Wow, that actually hurt a little bit. _Get a grip Kate; he's not worth it, who cares what he says?_

"_Ugh, _I don't even know what she sees in you," she said as she turned away from him.

"Well…I don't know what she sees in you either."

They began gathering the drinks, which the bartender had placed in front of them, and as they started heading back to the table, she had to have a final word, "You know what? Don't even talk to me."

"Fine by me."

**Well, looks like Castle and Beckett aren't too fond of each other anymore. How are we going to change that? You'll just have to keep reading to find out.**

**BTW, sorry for the slightly longer wait with this one, it took me a while to be happy with it.**


End file.
